Can nurses support women who have been psychologically abused?

The Scottish Government has recently approved the  Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill, which is being hailed by many as a landmark in addressing domestic violence. The Bill creates a specific offence of ''abusive behaviour towards a partner or ex-partner'', including psychological abuse - such as coercive and controlling behaviour.

Bradbury-Jones and Clark (2016) argue that nurses need to 'use every interaction with patients to detect domestic violence and abuse'. However in a more recent study, Bradbury-Jones, Clark and Taylor (2017) report that, although nurses play a key role in responding to domestic abuse, their responses were often inappropriate or unhelpful. Including: trivialising or ignoring the abuse; ineffectively responding due to a lack of time, privacy or confidence; being frightened of offending women; or as a consequences of their own experience of being abused. 

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References

1. Bradbury-Jones, C. & Clark, M.T. (2016) How to address domestic violence and abuse. Nursing Times, online issue, 12, 1-4. 

2. Bradbury-Jones, C., Clark, M.T. & Taylor, J. (2017) Abused women’s experiences of a primary care identification and referral intervention: A case study analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing. DOI: 10.1111/jan.13250